Five Questions with Biche of ChickAboutTown

ChickAboutTown is a blog/online-entreprise that portrays the diversity of East African towns,  people, and events through a cultural lens. Recently we caught up with Biche — the portal’s founder — and asked her our 5 questions.

1. In TZ we have loads of blogs, but unfortunately most of them lack originality in content. Yours is one of the very few which seem to portray original content. How do you do it? What’s your advice for aspiring and upcoming bloggers out there?

Thank you for the compliment! How do I do it? For starters, I blog in a niche that is not common in the Tanzanian blogosphere, namely living and lifestyle in East Africa. Secondly, I start most of my posts with only an idea and a blank page, which I then fill with words and pictures, rather than basing my posts on stories or pictures sourced from elsewhere on the web or in regular media. This pretty much guarantees that anything I publish will be original.

For aspiring and upcoming bloggers, my advice is two-fold: 1) Commit to blogging, and 2) As a good friend of mine likes to put it, “Do you!” I bring up the issue of commitment because though it is easy to start a blog, keeping up with it in the face of writer’s block, self-doubt, criticism, and minimal reward is a whole other issue. If you continue writing posts, even as the going gets tough, and maybe re-strategize a little, then chances are that the rough patch will pass and your blog will continue to grow bigger and better. My second piece of advice addresses the issue of originality more directly. Instead of emulating other bloggers, I advise bloggers to blog authentically. Blog about a subject that excites you! Express yourself in a way that feels natural to you! Just as no two people are exactly alike, no two blogs will be alike if bloggers blog authentically. Original is not something one needs to strive to be, it’s what we all are when we are not trying to be like someone else.

2. Can you comment on the low number of female bloggers/ digital journalists that one encounters in the webspace? In your opinion is this only a Tanzanian phenomenon?

I don’t think there’s a low number of female bloggers/digital journalists on the web—both in Tanzania and elsewhere. Is that your experience?

3. Your blog is about East Africa; people, places and culture. Do you think East Africans value intra-regional travel? For those Tanzanians who can afford the travel costs, do they visit Rwanda, or Uganda for leisure? How can we increase tourists from within the region?

I don’t think East Africans value intra-regional travel per se, though they do travel intra-regionally for reasons such as education, business, and other socio-political reasons. Travel within the region seems to be on an increase, though, especially with the advent of the East African Common Market.

For Tanzanians, I find that those who can afford to travel for leisure are more prone to take holidays outside the region to places such as South Africa, Dubai, Europe, and America, rather than within the region, which is quite a shame given that East Africa is a choice tourist destination for many across the world. To increase intra-regional tourism, more information needs to be made available to East Africans about what the region has to offer them in terms of tourist destinations. Many East Africans know little about tourist destinations in their own countries, let alone those in neighboring East African countries. Those they do know about, they often incorrectly assume cost more than they can afford. The truth, though, is that there are tourist destinations in East Africa for all budgets, and many destinations offer special reduced rates for nationals/residents and for the nationals/residents of other East African countries.

4. Which city in the region do you think embodies that ‘true’ East African feel? That is, it shares characteristics of many East African towns in the outset without losing a bit of its own cultural feel.

Hmmm…that’s a difficult question! And frankly, no city comes to mind. East Africa is vast both in expanse and in cultures, and its cities reflect that diversity. What is the “true” East African feel? Until we become a little more similar—which I am sure will happen as a result of the East African Community becoming more of a practical reality—I don’t think there is one. Most of our cities currently reflect their distinctive national character rather than a regional character.

5. Is ChickAboutTown only about the website? Is there a project behind the scenes?

For a moment there, I thought you were reading my mind, but coming to think of it, I believe we’ve discussed this in person before. No, ChickAboutTown is not just about the website. There’s an e-book in the works that will feature short lifestyle guides for each of the major East African cities. That’s what my ‘Be My Guide to your East African City’ Series is about. And yes, there is a business component to ChickAboutTown that centers on providing information about living and lifestyle in the region.

We kindly thank Biche for her elaborate responses to our 5 little questions. So. If you are travelling to any East African town and are looking for interesting ideas to make your visit worthwhile, visit her website: www.chickabouttown.com, email: biche(at)chickabouttown(dot)com or follow her Facebook page for tips.